Lost wanderer
by moonbird
Summary: AU: It's a strange feeling, waking up in a alley not remembering how you got there. Hector has no idea what happened before, he only knows what he needs to do now, he needs to go home. Something is wrong though, something is just off. It's kind of weird how no one sees him or responds to his question. Still Hector only has one goal in his head. Going home, no matter what.
1. Chapter 1

Slow breaths…. in… out…. Everything was… dark… pitch black, darker than the blackest night. Oh wait, his eyes were closed. Right.

Slowly Hector opened his eyes, though that didn't help a lot… it was still dark. Though there were outlines of… what? Buildings? Where?

Slowly Hector tried to gather his thoughts, were was he? He could have sworn he had been with Ernesto just a moment ago, there had been a pain in his stomach, it had hurt a lot… Something about a Chorizo…

Hector groaned as he sat up, slipping a hand through his unruly hair. Was this… an alleyway? Drowsily Hector looked around at the narrow alleyway he was in, bags of trash all around him, it smelled absolutely horrible, some sort of dumpster. What on earth was he doing here? He needed to go home, he was on his way home.

Slowly Hector looked all around himself trying to locate his luggage. Oh, there was his suitcase, mindlessly Hector reached for it and looked around for the guitar but found nothing.

Oh great, if he had lost his guitar Imelda was going to kill him. It had taken her two years of polishing shoes in secret to afford that guitar as a gift to him so he wouldn't have to play the cheap one he had used to make due with.  
He couldn't go without the guitar… where was it?

Hector continued looking but didn't find a guitar, instead his eyes finally fell on a pretty odd looking man laying among the trash, half burried beneath the sacks.

Hector looked oddly at the man, the guy looked oddly familiar. He was tall and gangly, with thick black hair and a little black goatee. The man seemed to be out for the count, had he been drinking and the passed out among the trash? What a silly thing to do.  
Hector shook his head, people sometimes.

Then suddenly Hector blinked and then looked down to his ankle, there was an animal there. It was a really weird looking one!

It mostly looked like a Iguana but its colors were all wrong, the colors were bright and shining in multiple colors, such as bright blue, red, green, yellow, orange and it even had wings… What a weird creature, and now it was biting at his pants legs trying to pull him away.

"Oh i'm sorry." Hector smiled kindly. "I'm not going that way, i'm going home." he stated as he took a few steps, not in the direction the lizard wanted him to go. How-ever Hectors seize won and he just walked towards the train station. Guitar or no guitar, he was going home.

* * *

At another place, in an entirely other world in fact several skeletons were sitting by their desks, in front of them were papers were words were magically being written down telling about the happenings of the living world, a woman with long straight black hair and mostly blue flower markings on her skulls were reading the paper that was being made right in front of her and then spoke up. "We have a wanderer!" she spoke up. "He's walking the opposite direction of the nearest cross-over point."

A man sighed as he leaned over the desk, another skeleton this one wearing a shirt and tie and holding a coffee cup as he glanced down. "Does he know he's dead?"

"Don't seem like it." The woman commented.

"Of course, that's how it always is." The man rolled his eyes. "So who is it this time?" he asked.

"A Hector Rivera." The woman commented. "21 years old… That sure is young, that probably explains why it hasn't occurred to him he's dead yet."

"So some young idiot who got drunk and ended up in a accident or something?" The man exhaled deeply. "Typical young people, they all think they are immortal. Has a spirit guide greeted him?"

"Yeah, but he's not following it." The woman commented then sighed. "Well, hopefully he'll realize he's dead fairly quick. It's always such a hassle when you have to convince people."

"Tell me about it." The man sighed. "Especially those young idiots. Always shouting they are to young to die, that they are actually destined to become stars or what-ever. And usually it's their own damn fault they are dead."

The woman though were glancing on the paper, sadly the information written was very limited, it didn't even say how the man had died only the time and place… Something felt off about this one though. Something was not right… She swallowed, she could only hope she was wrong and this was going to resolve itself peacefully.


	2. Chapter 2

The night train… Hector could only count himself lucky that he actually managed to catch one. Unfortunately he hadn't quite managed to catch the train that went directly back to Cecillia, but he could at least take this one part of the way and change trains at a train station only a few hours away.

The train was bumbling along the tracks as outside the dessert wind was playing around with the sand, the train was almost empty and the few people whom all were there were all quiet, some were sleeping while others seemed like they were just about to as they were nodding off.

Hector was just sitting in his own seat with his suitcase on his lap starring dead eyed out into the air, he was on his way home… That's all that mattered.

That odd Iguana with the many colors, it hadn't left him at all but were now sitting on the table right in front of him looking at Hector with expecting eyes. Hector frowned slightly confused… What did this thing want? Why did it keep following him? Somehow its eyes looked very intelligent and… Was it normal for Iguanas to have wings?  
Well maybe it was a sub species Hector supposed, it didn't matter.

Suddenly the door to the train wagon was slide open and revealed a man in uniform. "Tickets." the man stated. "Any new passengers, show me your tickets."

The newest passengers started to stir and then they all yawned as they found the little paper ticket stumps and Hectors eyes widened.

Ticket?! How could he have forgotten?! Hector started to touch all over his body in search of a ticket he already knew wasn't there and in no time at all the ticket master was next to him. "I am so sorry!" Hector shouted looking up. "I forgot to buy one, I know that doesn't sound like an excuse but please i'll pay what-ever fine just don't throw me off the train I need to go home!" he stated.

The Ticket master though…. Wasn't even looking at Hector in fact he had only halted a moment at Hectors seat and then walked on to the next passenger.

Hector blinked then turned his head. "Sir?" he asked confused, still the ticket master didn't even react already unto the next ticket he was checking, astounded Hector sat back… Had the.. Had the man decided to just let it slide? What a kind gesture!

Maybe it was because this was the night train so the ticket master could turn the blind eye to a blind passenger, what an generous and kind man.

Hector exhaled deeply as he leaned back, then he looked down on his suitcase and opened it suddenly feeling inspired to write a song about a kind ticket master and a blind passenger in need. The sight that met Hector though, made him frown in dismay.

His suitcase was an absolute mess, like someone had been digging through it… All of his clothes which he specifically remembered he had been folding probably was all in a disarray and… where was his notebook?  
Hector started to search for it but came up empty handed… Strange. First the guitar now the notebook? He wouldn't just misplace his notebook, all of his songs were written down in that. Including all the ones written specifically for Coco and Imelda.

Well… it didn't matter, he could always write new songs Hector supposed as he closed his suitcase again and leaned back closing his eyes sighing deeply. He was just happy he was on his way home.

* * *

"Two hours." The female skeleton then stated from where she sat with the magic papers. "Two hours and he hasn't realized he's dead yet."

The male skeleton with the coffee sighed deeply. "Oh boy, have to tell him." he commented. "I am not envying you Loretta."

The female skeleton frowned. "He is moving at a high speed… looks like he's on a transport. A train I think."

"How odd." The man frowned. "Where do you think he could be going? Did he promise to meet up with a sweetheart at a specific spot or something?"

"How should I know?!" The woman asked then sighed deeply. "Well, where-ever he thinks he's going he need to stop." she commented standing up. "Oh god this is the worst." she groaned but then straightened out her uniform and grabbed a hat. "Well… Better just get it over with." she muttered putting the black cap on her head over her black hair.

The dead could not cross into the world of the living, only on the day of the dead and only if they had been summoned by some sort of representation standing out. Such as their name carved in wood or their likeness painted on a portrait or carved into a wooden figure. Fortunately with the invention of photography and the slow normalization of it, it had become easier to be represented in the land of the living but all of that didn't matter now.

Loretta could not exactly cross over to the world of the living where the wandering spirit was riding a train to only god knows where. Instead she walked directly into a black room.

The black room had odd properties, it was small and square with shiny walls and could project images of the lost wandering spirits in the land of the living like a hologram and in turn who ever was in the room would be projected back at them so it was like they were speaking face to face even if they literately were in two different worlds.

Loretta exhaled deeply and then spoke up. "Show me the wandering spirit Hector Rivera." she asked.

* * *

Hector was drowsily looking out the door window as the train was driving over the terrain and he sighed deeply, just as a gentle voice sounded next to him.

"Senor Rivera."

Hector turned his head, and next to him stood a woman in a uniform… Hector squinted his eyes, the woman looked… He couldn't even really put words on it, but something looked strange about her, something was a little off. "I'm sorry about the ticket." he then said. "I forgot to buy one, but please don't throw me off the train. I have to go home."

That made the woman blink. "You're headed home?" she asked.

"Yes, to my wife and child." Hector stated. "Please, i'll pay what-ever fine I need. I just want to go home."

"Oh, that explains it." The woman commented then hesitated. "Don't worry, I am not after your money and I wont tell about the ticket." she stated then slowly sat down, until she was seated in front of Hector. "Senor Rivera. My name is Loretta Mendoza, you can just call me Loretta if you want." she spoke in a gentle and kind voice. "I am here, because I need to talk to you."

Hector blinked as he looked at the woman, still noting that something was weird about her but still he couldn't quite place it. "Talk about what?" Hector asked.

Loretta hesitated. "Senor Rivera. Haven't you noticed anything strange going on? For the last two hours?" she asked.

"Strange?" Hector asked. "Not really." he commented just as the multi colored Iguana with wings right in front of him twisted its neck.

"Are you sure?" Loretta asked. "You haven't noticed… people whom seemed like they didn't see you, people whom ignored you when you tried to speak to them? You haven't been in a accident and then just walked away?"

"Accident? No." Hector blinked. "I mean I did have a stomach ache earlier, but Ernesto said it was probably just a bad Chorizo, he was probably right. The stomach ache is gone now so." he shrugged.

"Senor Rivera." Loretta swallowed. "Listen, there is no way to break this easily to you so I am just going to tell you bluntly." she stated. "Two hours ago, in the city you came from. You died." she stated. "People whom are alive, they haven't been able to see you or hear you, because you're dead."

Blankly Hector looked at Loretta with a completely blank face expression. "What?" he asked.

"You're dead." Loretta repeated in a patient voice. "Surely, you must remember you have blacked out and then woke up again. When you woke up, you were dead."

Just as blankly did Hector Look at Loretta, then suddenly the edges of his mouth started to curl up, then he started to chuckle. "Dead?" he asked. "Oh that's a good one Senorita so you're a comedian? Why didn't you just say so sooner, I love comedy."

"Senor Rivera! This is not a joke!" Loretta proclaimed. "You don't belong in this realm anymore, I need you to follow your spirit guide and come to the land of the dead."

"Land of the dead?!" Hector asked. "That's just a childrens tale, i'm not dead!" he stated. "What a ridicoules thing to say, how can I be here if i'm dead."

"That's the thing, you're not here!" Loretta pressed. "That's why no one can see or hear you."

"Then how come you can?!" Hector asked.

"Look at me Senor Rivera! I'm dead too!" Loretta pointed out.

That made Hector halt, finally… After their entire conversation did it hit him what was so off about this person… She had no flesh! There was no nose or ears, just a white skull with flowery markings around the eye sockets, she was wearing uniform but her hands were only bones and Hector let out a scream as he stood up.

"Senor Rivera!" Loretta stood up. "Calm down, it's going to be okay."

"You… You're a skeleton!" Hector exclaimed. "How is that possible?! That's not.."

"Senor Rivera… Hector." Loretta tried. "You're a skeleton too." she pointed out.

That made Hector halt, his eyes widened… he didn't want to look… he really did not want to look, and yet he couldn't help himself as he looked down at his fingers and saw… not ordinary flesh hands but bones! And Hector screamed looking at his hands, then turned to the window and saw his own reflection. A white skull with some flower markings similar to Loretta, the only thing alive about it being the yes in the eye sockets and Hector clasped his hands against his mouth as he stumbled back then fell down.

"SENOR RIVERA!" Loretta shouted.

"No… It can't be." Hector swallowed. "I'm not dead! I can't be dead, HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE?!" he shouted.

"You know that better than I." Loretta stated. "Just think."

"No." Hector squinted his eyes. "No-no-no! I just… It was just a stomach ache! A piece of bad food, I passed out I.." he swallowed ashe fought himself back up on his legs and then his eyes widened.

As suddenly… it all came back to him, waking up in that dumpster… his guitar gone… his suitcase a mess and that man whom had laid in the dumpster that man… Had not been sleeping.. not at all… The thing he had seen… was a dead body. And not just any body, his own dead body.

If Hector had had any stomach or any intestines, he would have vomited. He still felt sick and he wished he could vomit just to make that sick feeling go away.

"So you finally understand?" Loretta asked. "Look, it's okay. Being dead is not that bad at all, the land of the dead is a wonderful place where no one has to feel hunger or be sick. And if you have dead family members, they will meet you there." she stated. "I just need you to follow your spirit guide to the nearest cross over point." she encouraged. "You wont have to feel anymore pain, just follow your spirit guide."

At that Hector looked up. "What about my family? I can't leave them, I need to go home."

"You can't go home." Loretta had to remind him. "But you can visit, at the day of the dead. As long as they put out an offering and remembers your name, you can go see them. Wont that be lovely?"

"Visit?" Hector asked. "No, I can't just visit… I need to go home. I promised to come home." he stated as he backed away.

"Senor Rivera, I need you to cross over." Loretta stated now a bit more sternly. "If you don't cross over there'll be severe consequences, I am only trying to help you."

"I'm not coming with you!" Hector stated. "I'm going home!"

"Senor Rivera." Loretta tried again more sternly. "This is for your own good."

"NO!" Hector shouted. "I'M GOING HOME!" he shouted and turned around then stormed for the door.

"SENOR RIVERA!" Loretta shouted but was unable to follow due to the limitations of the room, instead the spirit guide flew after him as the train stopped and Hector ran outside.

Back in the land of the dead Loretta bit together as dread was filling him, then she headed out of the room. "WE HAVE A RUNNER!" she shouted. "This one is set on going home!"

Several heads turned in her direction. "Does he know he's dead?" a woman asked.

"Yes, he knows. He wants to go home anyway." Loretta bit together then sighed deeply. "I have a bad feeling about this." she then fully admitted, her previous bad feeling coming into full bloom.


	3. Chapter 3

Hector didn't know where he was running, only that he had to run… Dead? What a ridicules notion, he could not be dead!

That had not been his dead body back there, it couldn't have been! IT WAS SOMEONE ELSE! Some poor fool whom had died in that alley not him.

Or perhaps… Perhaps this was just a nightmare! Hector had eaten some bad food which had made him sick and now he was actually laying in bed somewhere having a bad fever dream, that would have to be it.

Ernesto was probably worried sick looking after him or something, Ernesto wouldn't just have left him there if he was dead… Ernesto. Without even thinking Hector called out. "Ernesto!" he shouted then again. "ERNESTO!"

Ernesto had been there with him when Hector had blacked out, he would know what was going on… No one answered though as Hector twirled around on the spot. No Ernesto, this was a town Hector had never been to before… He didn't even know what town this was he had just blindly jumped off the train.

Wide-eyed did Hector look around at the streets, it was still in the middle of the night so the streets were empty or… small sunbeams had started to appear, it was soon daybreak and thusly an older man had stepped outside holding a broom to sweep the front stairs to his house.

Immediately Hector rushed towards the elder man. "Excuse me!" he held up a hand. "Excuse me Senor, I don't mean to bother but do you know where I am?" he asked.

The man didn't respond, didn't even look up.

"Senor?" Hector asked. "Senor please, don't joke around with me. I am having a really bad time right now and all I need, I just need to know where I am so I can find out which way to go to get home!" he stated.

Still, the elder man didn't respond and Hector turned to see a young woman walk past him.

"Senorita!" Hector tried. "Senorita excuse me!" neither did she turn and another man came. "Senor! Senorita!" Hector tried to address the people whom started to slowly fill the street as light started to come.

"Senora!" Hector jumped right in front of an older woman whom walked straight through him as if he was air.  
Wide-eyed did Hector look down at himself, then touched his own torso as to check if it was solid… it seemed solid. But then why? Hector reached out for the nearest man, only for his hand to slip straight through the man. "No.." Hector gasped then shouted. "SENOR!" at a man. "SENORITA!" at another woman. "Please! Wont somebody answer me?!" he asked as he started to run down the street. "KID!" he shouted at a little boy.

But the boy only walked right through him and Hector gasped as he stepped back then fell down wide-eyed looking at the group of people walking back and forth right in front of him, no one noticing the man whom now was laying on the ground.

"Are you finally getting it?" A voice asked and Hector turned his head to scream and jump up again.

"You.. YOU AGAIN!" Hector shouted by the sight of the female skeleton in her uniform. Just then, the winged Iguana came again flying over the womans shoulder and towards Hector. "Hey! Let go!" Hector exclaimed trying to push away the Iguana. "What is this thing anyway?!"

"He's your spirit guide, he wants to take you to the land of the dead." Loretta tried to explain patiently. "Surely you must understand by now, you have to go."

"NO!" Hector shouted. "I don't have to go anywhere! There's only one place i'll go and that's home!"

"You don't have time for that!" Loretta stated in a hiss. "Just look at your hand."

"What my skeleton hand?! What else should I see?" Hector asked though he did lift his hand and then his eyes widened. "What.. WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!" he asked as suddenly, the finger tips of the skeleton hand were glowing in gold and that was not all, they seemed like they had started to become slightly see through.

"You don't belong here!" Loretta exclaimed. "You can't stay here, if you don't go to the land of the dead _that_ is what is going to happen! "

"What is that?" Hector asked holding up the hand as small golden particles seemed like they were flowing away.

"If you're lucky, you're just disappearing. Experiencing final death." Loretta informed.

"Final death, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?!" Hector shouted.

"It is as a I said, you'll disappear! Be gone from this world! Vanish! No one knows to where you'll just be gone! _All_ gone!" Loretta stated.

"And that's supposed to be if i'm lucky?!" Hector asked in a disbelieving voice.

"Yes, because at least then you wont go through an eternity of suffering!" Loretta stated. "Have you ever heard of poltergeists?!"

"Well erh… They are ghosts right?" Hector asked. "People say they bring back luck or.. But it's just a story."

"IT IS REAL!" Loretta shouted. "What the humans calls poltergeists we call lost souls, souls bound to the world of the living by an emotion! These souls have lost all sense of their former self, they don't even look humanoid anymore and all they feel is the emotion they felt upon their death but it can't ever be satisfied!" she stated. "And thusly they will be on a eternal rampage trying to fulfill what-ever goal they had but that goal cannot ever be fulfilled don't you get that?" she asked. "Those things, all they are are misery and despair, there is no coherent thoughts or ideas, they have become unable to ever move on, there's only emotion and not a good emotion! You're disappearing, but if you will yourself to stay you'll just turn into _that!_ "

"Well if that's my only choice." Hector seethed.

"IT'S NOT!" Loretta shouted. "All you have to do is come to the land of the dead! You'll be able to maintain the form you have now, the memories and thoughts you have now. As long as someone remembers you you'll be fine and you'll be able to see your family again when they die."

"WHAT GOOD WOULD THAT BE IF THEY ARE DEAD TOO?!" Hector shouted. "When they are dead it will already be to late, I need to go home _now!_ "

"YOU STUPID IDIOT!" Loretta screamed. "Why wont you just get it! You can't go home!"

"Let's see about that!" Hector huffed walking past her.

"WAIT!" Loretta shouted then groaned now again cursing the limitations of the room. "HECTOR! WHAT YOU WANT ISN'T POSSIBLE! YOU CAN'T GO HOME!" she shouted.

"SHUT UP!" Was the responds and the other skeleton was gone from sight at least from as far as the black room could see.

Fantastic… This promised to become the biggest head ache in the after life.


End file.
